Wow! Iím clearly in the minority here but, I truly find these figures to be completely and utterly hideous.

Wow, really Todd? Is it mostly just the soft goods that are bothering you? I can understand that a little, since I'm not a big propenent of them either, and they do look a little "clumpy" on these figures...

If it's just the soft goods, then do you like the Han at all, that comes without any soft goods? Just curious if that's all your beef is with, or if it runs any deeper than that...

If it were just the cloth I might have been able to get past it. Maybe? But when you add ToyBiz-style articulation to ridiculously frumpy "soft goods", both things that I absolutely detest, thatís the worst thing that could happen to Star Wars figures as far as Iím concerned. Again, lucky for Hasbro Iím in the minority on this issue. I'm aware that many people want to see more soft goods and more articulation in the 3-3/4" line so this news must be very welcome news for them. But, I wonder how many people would like these figures if they were not coming packaged on the faux vintage cards? I know I still wouldn't. Beyond the packaging, nothing about the three figures revealed so far feels ďvintageĒ to me. Damn, at first glance I thought I was looking at new 12Ē Luke and Ben figures not 3-3/4Ē figures. What does that say? Besides perhaps that my eyes are going bad.

I was really looking forward to getting those vintage-style cards too, but truth be told, nostalgia isnít more important than my personal preferences, But hey, I still look forwrd to the forthcoming Original Trilogy Collection cards and figures. Even the Repacks.

So, what are your predictions for the remaining 9 figures for this line?

ANH:LukeHanObi-WanLeia

ESB:YodaLandoVaderBoba Fett

ROTJ:ChewyC-3POR2-D2Stormtrooper

Ding ding ding! So what do I (and MikeyD) win?! OK, so I got the movies reversed on the Fett and R2, but character-wise I was 12 for 12! But as I mentioned in Justin's Stormtrooper thread, I really would've rather seen a nicely articulated and cloth robed Emperor, instead of the super popular army builder - the Stormtrooper.

I still think that the VOTC 12 will get recarded and rereleased as part of the regular line a little later on - hopefully even in the OTC assortment. Hasbro just put too much time and money into finally making the definitive versions of these characters to only put them out in a "limited" release.

Here's the official announcement from Hasbro's Q & A, including release dates:

Quote

Question: Who are the 12 characters in the Vintage figures waves? And when will they be available?

Answer: www.starwars.hasbro.com will be doing a weekly spotlight on each of these figures starting in the Spring. However, the 12 figures will be:

Wave 1: Luke, Obi-Wan, Han Solo, Princess Leia - Planned to be available in JulyWave 2: Darth Vader, C-3P0, Yoda, Lando Calrissian - Planned to be available in AugustWave 3: Stormtrooper, Chewbacca, R2-D2, Boba Fett - Planned to be available in September

Wow! Cool deal. Thanks for the heads up (and scoop) Nick! The Vader and C-3PO (with partially silver leg) look great! Yoda... hard to tell, but not super striking to me as of yet. Lando doesn't look so hot on the other hand. I think I like the POTJ version much better, though this one will have more articulation. I'll have to see them in person to make my final judgement though.

Hopefully that C-3PO is fully articulated EVERYWHERE. That would be a dream come true finally... I wonder if Vader's cape is really held by the chain, which looks a little too big all spread across his shoulders like that. The rest of him looks excellent though!

Wonder why Leia got left out of the mix (again)... Maybe they're having some problems with her final sculpt or something, otherwise we would've seen her up close by now, I'd imagine. She wasn't at Toy Fair either, for some reason...

This certainly was a nice surprise to see this morning. I think that these figures look pretty great, not so sure about the Lando yet. I think I might like the POTJ version better (the cape at least was better), but the articulation on this one looks much improved. The rest look great, I am really diggin the Vader. I really like the nods to the vintage line, with Yoda coming with a snake, cloth included, etc. I can't wait to see the rest!

Yeah, 3rd me for a thank you to Nick for the images... They all look great to me, though Luke still is the "Stinker" of the bunch. Fair enough since I'm happy with the other Tatooine Lukes in the small army of them we've received over the years. I look at it as this LUke's gonna be a great piece for customizing (god willing he's available enough/for a fair price in more generic packaging).

-Lando... I love Lando's look actually. I have heard people question why his pants are so high, but it's actually his belt that gives that illusion. I think the cape on the POTJ Lando's better looking though, but these are definitely not looking like production figures to me at this point so I'll reserve judgement on the cape for now.

-C-3PO kicks butt of course. A nice clean 3PO is a good idea since it's been a long time since one's been available. I'm guessing he's articulated well, but it's real tough to say by the picture. I wonder if his limbs are removable as well? Include the net then perhaps?

-Yoda ROCKS! Best Yoda Ever, quite simply. This, like Scott, is the Yoda I've always wanted. A Vintage-esque Yoda who even has a SNAKE to wrap around the barrel of Luke's X-Wing laser. That's great.

-Darth Vader also is a great looking figure, and I predict he'll be one of the hottest figures out of the lineup. Super Articulated, and I do believe that chain's attached to the cape. Looks great to me. I really want one to pop a Throne Room Duel Vader head onto though, for a Rem. Helmet version (should this version not have that feature).

Great stuff all around, and I still love the 3 from Toy Fair as much as the day I saw them.

Again, if Hasbro makes these so limited nobody can find them, and they're not available within the basic line, I think it'll be one of the single biggest mistakes ever made with this line. There's already huge outcry for people to get 2, 3, or more sets of these... Customizers are buzzing about wanting extras at a fair price. These are easily the best versions of these characters, and should really see some re-release status.

Great stuff. Can't wait to see the final 4, who I think will make up the hottest wave of all. Stormtrooper and Boba Fett? Fuggeddabout it! Those will fly off shelves, even at $10 I believe.

SilverZ

Vader is simply amazing. I even like the cape. There's nothing apparently missing from this one. Looks like Ultimate Vader to me. Since he looks to have a ballsocket head I'd put bets on a removable helmet version quickly after if this doesn't include the feature.